


Peace Surpassing Understanding

by allonsy_gabriel



Category: The Adventure Zone (Podcast)
Genre: Catharsis, Comfort, Crying, Cuddling & Snuggling, Fluff, Happy, M/M, Peace, Post-Episode: e067-069 Story and Song Parts 1-3, Self-Indulgent, Tooth-Rotting Fluff, hey guys?, johann was right, we won
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-11-09
Updated: 2020-11-09
Packaged: 2021-03-09 07:08:31
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,035
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27466945
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/allonsy_gabriel/pseuds/allonsy_gabriel
Summary: The night after the Day of Story and Song, Taako cried.He couldn’t remember the last time he’d done that.
Relationships: Kravitz/Taako (The Adventure Zone), Taako (The Adventure Zone) & Everyone
Comments: 11
Kudos: 75





	Peace Surpassing Understanding

**Author's Note:**

> i don't even know what to say, except that it feels so nice to be able to rest, even if it's only for a little bit

The night after the Day of Story and Song, Taako cried.

He couldn’t remember the last time he’d done that.

It was surprisingly quiet, up on the moon. There’d been celebrations, of course, but by the time the combined Bureau and IPRE parties made their way back up to the moon, things were peaceful and dark.

They gathered together in Magnus, Merle, and Taako’s shared dorm, the seven of them, along with Avi and Carey and Killian and Angus. Taako made cider, a massive batch of it set to boil on the stovetop, filling the whole dorm with the scent of apples and cinnamon and nutmeg and orange, and they all gathered in the living room, where someone had pulled the rug aside to stare down at the planet below them.

A planet they had saved.

Taako clutched his mug tighter and looked around the room.

Lup and Barry were curled up together on the sofa, or as _curled up_ as they could be when Lup was a magic ghost. Merle and Davenport were talking to each other in hushed tones on the loveseat. Magnus was whispering to Killian and Avi as Carey slept against Killian’s side. Angus was tucked into Magnus’ lap, glasses crooked as he dozed. Lucretia sat in the last armchair, white-knuckling a mug of cider with misty eyes and a small, sad smile.

Taako felt a lump forming in his throat, and he set aside his mug as he slipped off into his bedroom.

Oftentimes, people who were injured in battle didn’t realise it until the fight was over. It was something Taako had witnessed plenty of times—hell, it was something Taako had _experienced_ plenty of times. While you were in the middle of a fight, you didn’t notice the pain—there was too much adrenaline, too much to think about, too much at _stake_. But later, when the battle was over and things calmed, _then_ you felt it, building in waves before crashing over you all at once.

Alone in his room, Taako felt the full weight of a hundred years of fear and desperation and _exhaustion_ crash over him, and he stumbled as made his way to his bed.

It was _over_.

They had _won_.

And Taako—

Taako laid on top of his bed and clung to one of his pillows as he felt the tears begin to slip down his face.

They did it. They _did it_.

Taako smiled as he stared up at his ceiling.

A century of fighting, of running, of loss and loneliness and looking over his shoulder, and now—now— _now_ —

There was a sound like the tearing of fabric and the crackling of electricity all at once, and suddenly, standing in front of Taako’s bed, still half a skeleton, was Kravitz.

“Um, Taako?” he asked quietly. “I—you said that we would, ah, _hook up_ after we, um, stopped the end of the world, so I figured I would just—are you alright?”

He was hovering over Taako, the last of his dark brown skin knitting over muscle and fat and bone as he stared at Taako with something akin to panic in his eyes.

“Are you hurt?” he continued, his hands fluttering uselessly over Taako’s torso as his eyes flitted around, searching for any sign of injury. “I—tell me what’s wrong, Taako, and I’ll—my healing magic is a little rusty, I usually just, uh, evaporate when I’m hurt, so I don’t use it all that often, but I should be able to—”

Taako’s grin widened.

“Calm down, Skeletor,” he said, lifting himself up onto his elbows and wiping his eyes on the collar of his blouse. “Take a breath. Taako’s good.”

Kravitz tilted his head to the side slightly, his hair falling into his face. “You’re crying,” he muttered, reaching out to cup Taako’s cheek and brush away a stray tear.

“Just sprung a bit of a leak, don’t—don’t worry about it,” Taako insisted, leaning into Kravitz’s touch. “You here, uh—you here to stay, or is Bird Mama gonna come a-calling the moment we get comfy?”

Kravitz huffed and rolled his eyes. “The _Raven Queen_ ,” he began, “my _patron goddess and also boss_ , has granted me a… temporary leave of absence.”

“You cashing in on your vacay days?”

Kravitz smiled. “Something like that.”

Taako flopped back down onto his mattress and held out his arms. “C’mere.”

“Oh?”

“Listen, babe, aye-dee-kay if you noticed, but ch’boy just saved, uhhhhh, _all of reality_ , so I think I’ve—I think I’ve earned a fucking cuddle-sesh with my boyfriend, y’know?” Taako said, making grabby hands. “C’mere.”

Kravitz laughed and, with a snap, his suit melted away, replaced by a thick black sweater and long flannel pants that would hopefully block his incessant chill. He crawled into bed beside Taako, his own arms coming up to wrap around Taako’s waist.

“Are you sure you’re okay?” he asked after a long, quiet moment.

Taako paused for a moment, his hands stilling the rhythmic pattern they’d been tracing along Kravitz’s spine, as he, in a rare moment of emotional honesty and awareness, thought about it.

“I…” he started, and then stopped again, the words catching in his throat. He huffed and shook his head for a second, kissing Kravitz’s temple. “I think so,” he finally continued. “It’s… It’s like—there was a _weight_ on me for so long, Krav. Even when I didn’t—even when I didn’t know what the fuck it _was_ , it was always _there_ , this—this _fear_ that at any moment, everything could just fucking—fall apart, y’know? I was so fucking _scared_ , all the time, and now that’s _gone_ but I—it was _exhausting_ , Kravitz. I’m _exhausted._ ”

Kravitz didn’t immediately reply, instead squeezing Taako tighter and pressing a kiss to his cheek.

“Then rest,” he whispered. “It’s… it’s not _over_ —the world did just suffer through an apocalypse, I’m sure there’s still plenty to do—but you can stop for a little while. You can rest, even just for now.”

Taako released a long, deep breath he hadn’t realised he was holding, and Kravitz kissed his cheek again, and there, together, in the dark and the quiet, they found peace.

**Author's Note:**

> tell me what you think, stay safe, and take care <3


End file.
